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Lacazette had been taken off with a hamstring niggle as Lyon were beaten 1-0 at home by Clermont in Round 17, suffering their second loss in a streak of four league games in which they have won just once.

That has left them a massive 16 points off second place and automatic qualification for next season's UEFA Champions League. A UEFA Europa League place awaits the Coupe de France winner, and with just four more rounds to negotiate before the final at the Stade de France on 29 April, it offers OL the shortest route to a return to European competition.

Lacazette did not emerge from the substitutes' bench until after second division Metz had equalised at the Groupama Stadium on Saturday, but it was the man who joined the fray at the same time as him, FIFA World Cup winner Nicolas Tagliafico, who had the bigger impact, flicking on a corner that Castello Lukeba headed and the visitors' Fali Candé turned into his own goal to decide the tie 2-1 in the hosts' favour.

WATCH: Lyon slip up at home to Clermont

"We started the game well. We had chances we should have put away. When we scored, as is often the case, there was a little unconscious drop-off, which allowed our opponents to get back into it. Right now, Lyon are struggling. When we win, it's OK, and when there's a defeat against Clermont, it's not. There's the attitude that needs improving, but there's not only that. There's quality. You have to work at it," explained Blanc.

"I'm happy, because the players make an effort, even if you can't always see it. We played to our strengths. We lined up with a very young team."

Saël Kumbedi, 17, Lukeba, 20, and Sinaly Diomandé, 21, made up three-quarters of the OL back line, Rayan Cherki, 19, was in the number 10 role, and Bradley Barcola, 20, who scored the opening goal, started on the left wing.

"It does us good to win, it's a victory that is going to lift our spirits," said Barcola after netting his maiden first-team goal for the club. "I took the handbrake off a bit more in the second half and I was able to score. I'm so proud to have scored my first goal at home. We're not going to forget the faux pas against Clermont, and we're going to win against Nantes and Strasbourg."

WATCH: Nantes defeat Auxerre

After disposing of Auxerre 1-0 last weekend - their second win in seven games - to move four points clear of the four-team relegation zone, Nantes started their defence of the Coupe de France with a 2-0 victory over amateur side AF Virois on Saturday, a triumph that could come at the cost of a lengthy spell on the sidelines for Nicolas Pallois.

The veteran centre-back suffered a knee injury in the game, and further medical examination will determine how much time he spends in the treatment room where he will find Pedro Chirivella, Moussa Sissoko and Quentin Merlin, who all missed the cup tie.

"The aim was to respect our opponents, show a lot of humility. In that regard, we were good, pressing a lot to prevent our opponents playing, trying to show there's five divisions between us. We took our opponents by the throat and didn't let go," said boss Antoine Kombouaré after seeing goals from Mostafa Mohamed and Evann Guessand take his team into a Last 32 tie with another fifth-tier side Thaon-Les-Vosges. "We're the holders, so we had to go through to try and hold on to our trophy for as long as possible."

Probable teams

Nantes: Lafont (c); Corchia, Castelletto, Girotto, Centonze; Doucet, Moutoussamy; Guessand, Blas, Simon; Ganago

Lyon: Lopes; Kumbedi, Diomandé, Lukeba, Da Silva; Mendes, Caqueret; Tete, Cherki, Toko-Ekambi; Lacazette (c)

>> Laurent Blanc: 'A very strong squad'

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